The College Football Playoff race is in full swing, and a few unbeatens will put their records on the line in this week’s slate of games. Here is a look at some games to keep an eye on this Saturday.
Boston College vs. Clemson
Date: Friday, Oct. 31
Time: Noon ET
TV: ABC
Spread: Clemson -31
Clemson is one of the premier teams in college football and showed why last week beating Syracuse by 26 points while clearly struggling with consistency and Travis Etienne cramps on offense. The Tigers will look to get back on track against a Boston College team that should not be overlooked. As the defensive coordinator at Ohio State, Boston College head coach Jeff Hafley limited the Clemson offense to 29 points, shutting it out in the first quarter of last year’s game. While Boston College does not have the athletes Ohio State did, it should keep this one closer than the spread indicates and put a little pressure on the Tigers. Ultimately the duo of Etienne and Trevor Lawrence will overcome the Eagles defense and pull away, but they will likely need all four quarter to do so.
Prediction: Clemson wins 41-20
Georgia vs. Kentucky
Date: Saturday, Oct. 31
Time: Noon ET
TV: SECN
Spread: Georgia -15
An underrated matchup, Georgia and Kentucky are a couple teams with a punch-you-in-the-mouth attitude that will show up on Saturday. Both enter the game coming off frustrating losses and are looking to get back on track. Georgia’s Stetson Bennett will get the start after a poor outing against Alabama, but as JT Daniels continues to get healthy, Bennett’s leash will get shorter. A strong performance will be crucial for Bennett moving forward. Meanwhile, Kentucky is in a quarterback battle of its own and will likely start Joey Gatewood with Terry Wilson injured. Gatewood might give the offense a bit of boost, but Georgia is simply more talented on both sides of the ball and should win this one by a couple scores.
Prediction: Georgia wins 34-16
Memphis vs. Cincinnati
Date: Saturday, Oct. 31
Time: Noon ET
TV: ESPN
Spread: Cincinnati -7
After taking down conference foe SMU, Cincinnati faces another tough AAC match up with the Memphis Tigers coming in to Nippert Stadium. The Bearcats remain entrenched in the top 10 thanks to a dominate defense allowing a conference-low 12.5 points per game. That defense will be tested early and often by Memphis coming off back-to-back conference wins and averaging nearly 550 total yards of offense per game. In a game between strength versus strength, something has got to give, and my money is on the Memphis offense that has yet to see a secondary like the Bearcats. Desmond Ridder and the offense will play complementary football limiting the touches for Brady White and crew, which will ultimately fall short and potentially be eliminated from conference contention.
Prediction: Cincinnati wins 34-27
Michigan State vs. Michigan
Date: Saturday, Oct. 31
Time: Noon ET
TV: FOX
Spread: Michigan -24.5
Typically a heated rivalry game, Michigan and Michigan State could not be further apart when it comes to season expectations. The Wolverines look to once again be one of the country’s premier teams after their impressive victory over Minnesota last week. The Spartans meanwhile have fallen to potential bottom dweller in the Big Ten after losing to a Rutgers team that had not won a conference game in 21 tries. The Spartan offense looked drastically overmatched last week and now finds itself up against Don Brown’s defense that features four likely NFL Draft picks along the defensive line. Michigan State quarterback Rocky Lombardi is in for another long day that will see the Wolverines put this game away before halftime.
Prediction: Michigan wins 45-6
LSU vs. Auburn
Date: Saturday, Oct. 31
Time: 3:30 p.m. ET
TV: CBS
Spread: LSU -3
LSU and Auburn both have a ton of talent but have struggled to put together a complete game so far this year. With both teams coming off wins, this game will be crucial to potentially elevating one team back into the conversation for a New Year’s Day bowl bid. Auburn’s quarterback Bo Nix will need to continue to show improvement in Chad Morris’ offense but likely is the best signal caller in this game with LSU potentially having to start a backup with Myles Brennan dealing with an injury. Auburn has had its ups and downs, but with a veteran receiving corps and improving defense it might get the better of an LSU team that still is learning to play together.
Prediction: Auburn wins 37-31
Northwestern vs. Iowa
Date: Saturday, Oct. 31
Time: 3:30 p.m. ET
TV: ESPN
Spread: Iowa -3.5
The Big Ten West looks like a wide open competition especially with Wisconsin’s COVID-19 issues. Iowa will look to rebound after a close loss to Purdue to open its season. The Hawkeyes missed on a couple big plays to Ihmir Smith-Marsette that could have changed the outlook of the game against the Boilermakers. However, the Hawkeyes still are 3.5-point favorites over Northwestern even though the Wildcats won their opening game over Maryland by 40 points. Peyton Ramsey, a transfer from Indiana, has taken over and presumably stabilized the quarterback position for the Wildcats, but he will have to prove himself in a step up against the Iowa defense. This is usually a low-scoring game and likely will be once more between two evenly matched teams. Iowa typically never loses at home and will pull this one out with a late stand by the defense.
Prediction: Iowa wins 23-19
Texas vs. Oklahoma State
Date: Saturday, Oct. 31
Time: 3:30 p.m. ET
TV: FOX
Spread: Oklahoma State -3.5
Oklahoma State had a huge win last week against Iowa State and now once again must defend its undefeated record. Texas has a history under Tom Herman as being a feisty underdog and with a quarterback like Sam Ehlinger the Longhorns simply cannot be counted out in any game. However, Oklahoma State is 4-1 in the last five meetings with Texas and has a defense that will give the Longhorns problems, specifically in the passing game. Spencer Sanders still looks like he is recovering from his lower body injury, but with him under center the Oklahoma State offense is at a different level and will score enough points to win another close one.
Prediction: Oklahoma State wins 38-33
Virginia Tech vs. Louisville
Date: Saturday, Oct. 31
Time: 4 p.m. ET
TV: ACCN
Spread: Virginia Tech -3
Louisville seems to have hit its stride once again on offense, and the defense appears to be much improved after a terrible start to the season. Offensively, few teams can boast the arsenal Louisville has with Javian Hawkins, Tutu Atwell, Dez Fitzpatrick, among others. Virginia Tech will need to find a way to stop the Louisville offense while also recapturing its own offense that went completely out the window last week against Wake Forest. Both Khalil Herbert and Raheem Blackshear have been weapons for Virginia Tech out of the backfield but if they want to hang with Louisville, the wide receivers will have to get more involved. This game has the feel of a shootout where turnovers could make the difference. Virginia Tech wins this one in a get right game.
Prediction: Virginia Tech wins 48-37
Ohio State vs. Penn State
Date: Saturday, Oct. 31
Time: 7:30 p.m. ET
TV: ABC
Spread: Ohio State -11.5
After a surprising and somewhat controversial loss to Indiana, Penn State must quickly regroup for its huge early season matchup against Ohio State. The Nittany Lions struggled to play a complete game on both sides of the ball but showed flashes particularly along their defensive line where the pass rushing duo of Shaka Toney and Jayson Oweh created consistent pressure. However, the Ohio State offensive line is certainly a tier or two above Indiana’s, and the Buckeye offense will likely have another strong showing albeit likely without top receiver Chris Olave who was injured against Nebraska. Penn State will come out with a lot emotion and play hard in this one, but Justin Fields is special and has elite players surrounding him which will make the difference in this one.
Prediction: Ohio State wins 41-28
Oklahoma vs. Texas Tech
Date: Saturday, Oct. 31
Time: 8 p.m. ET
TV: FOX
Spread: Oklahoma -14.5
Oklahoma appears to be back on track after a nice bounce-back win against a scrappy TCU team. The Sooners face another under-the-radar challenge against Texas Tech, which took Texas down to the wire earlier this year and is coming off its own conference over West Virginia. With high-flying offenses and suspect defenses, this game has the makings of a classic Big 12 shootout. Both teams can get a stop or two, but Oklahoma simply has better athletes across the board likely making a few more plays. Oklahoma will look to continue to get the offense right and hang a crooked number on the Red Raiders in this one.
Final Prediction: Oklahoma wins 58-36
Photo courtesy of Northwestern Athletics
Keep the conversation going by reaching out to Nick Larson on Twitter.